History of OAR
Though the student club was inactive for several decades, the Alumni branch of the club, consisting of up to 350 members, still planned hikes, trips and other gatherings. In the fall of 1999, a financial services representative and Hiyu Coolee alumnus, Steve Keogh, along with students Jon Lott, John Seaman, and Patricia Sierra-Mauriz re-founded the student branch of the club. The club offered 1-2 day hikes per month. Sometime around 2002, the Hiyu Coolee Hiking Club started offering trail building, rafting, and rock climbing trips mking it obvious that a new organization needed to form.
Under the umbrella of the University Recreation department, a new program was created in 2008:Outdoor Adventure Recreation. The new OAR integrated several outdoor-related student clubs into one comprehensive outdoor leadership program, offering regular trips in the areas of: bike, climb, service, snow, trial, and water.
The OAR program runs an average of 30+ trips per quarter, led by more than 20 student leaders with advanced training in group facilitation, wilderness medicine, risk management and incident response, and environmental stewardship. OAR also hosts several certification courses and outdoor skills workshops throughout the year.